Bredevoort



INTRODUCTION
	Bredevoort is the hometown of Marco. Bredevoort is located in the eastern part of the Netherlands in the province Gelderland, near the German border. The regional name for this part of the Netherlands is "De Achterhoek" which means "the back corner", a reference to the elbow of the Netherlands into Germany. Bredevoort has about 1600 inhabitants. It is situated in a central location between the large urban conglomeration in the west of the Netherlands known as Randstad and the German Ruhr area. Bredevoort is located on the provincial road from Aalten to Winterswijk, is easily accessible from both centres. Bredevoort is about 135 kilometre from Amsterdam, about a 1,5 hour drive by car.

HISTORY
	Bredevoort was founded about 800 years ago, it was named for a crossing of what was then a low swampy area traversed by the Slinge river. Bredevoort means "broad ford", corresponding to the English name Bradford. Today, the swamp has been erased by years of sediments and the Slinge river is a large stream. The men of Bredevoort where the defenders of castle Bredevoort, who rules a big area around Bredevoort, from 1326 till 1795. For centuries, Bredevoort was a strategic town and was a bone of contention between the bishops of Munster, Germany and the Lords of Gelderland, the Netherlands, who tooks turns in ruling the town. After the famous capture by Prince Maurits of Oranje in 1597 Bredevoort became a part of the Dutch Republic. Since 1696 the Kings and Queens of Oranje have the title "Lord or lady of Bredevoort". The historic windmill in Bredevoort is named "Prince of Oranje", because of honour. Bredevoort was the place of birth of Hendrikje Stoffels, the second wife of the famous Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn. In Bredevoort you find a statue in the honour of Hendrikje Stoffels. Today Bredevoort is a protected townscape, with historic houses and small streets.


BREDEVOORT TODAY
	Bredevoort in 1993 became the booktown of the Netherlands. Today Bredevoort has more the twenty second-hand and antiquarian bookshops. Every year the last weekend of August and the first weekend of September, Bredevoort there is the Gondelvaart. The gondolas display with bicycle lights historic scenes, building, comic figures, animal's etc. The parade floats along the ancient canal after night fall. The spectators watch from tribunes set up along the side of the canal, every year around 10.000 visitors come to the gondelvaart. After the parade there is a spectacular firework. Today a lot of tourists visit Bredevoort, to see the historical city and visit one of the bookshops in Bredevoort. Also a lot of tourists visit the Slingeplas a lake which is near Bredevoort for swimming or sunbathing in the summer.

BREDEVOORT
	Bredevoort has a restaurant called Bertram in the centre of the town at 't Zand. A youghcenter called Jongerencentrum 't Centrum at the Markt 2a. Two bars De Zwaan, at the Landstraat and Misterpoort at the Misterstraat. The bar De Zwaan is also a restaurant. The Misterpoort has also a snackbar for Dutch fast-food. Between Bredevoort and Lichtenvoorde in Baarlo their is a bar called Cafe Restaurant De Domme Aanleg, which is the sponsor of the gondola building group Bre-team from which Marco is a member.